08/11/2026
What does an underwater habitat have in common with a spacecraft? 🚀🌊
For five days, Jules’ Undersea Lab became the setting for SEA-STAR, a simulated orbital space mission designed to explore what it’s like to live, work, and conduct research in an isolated, confined, and extreme environment.
The mission was led by Commander Dr. Michaela Musilova, an astrobiologist, explorer, science communicator, and more than 30-time analog astronaut commander. After leading simulated missions to the Moon and Mars in land-based facilities, Michaela wanted to take on a new challenge: bringing a space analog mission underwater.
Joining her for SEA-STAR were:
⚙️ Executive Officer Paul Bakken — Analog astronaut, experienced aquanaut, and experimental engineer
🩺 Health & Safety Officer Dr. Brandy Nunez — Analog astronaut, veterinarian, and musician
🔬 Mission Specialist Jennifer Pint — Analog astronaut, researcher, and industrial safety expert
Together, the four-person crew lived and worked inside Jules’ while carrying out a variety of scientific and educational experiments.
During the mission, they:
🧠 Conducted cognitive and reaction-time testing under pressure
🌱 Studied seed germination in hyperbaric conditions
🤿 Used neutral buoyancy training to simulate Zero-G EVAs
🔬 Tested environmental sensors developed by students in Slovakia
🧰 Tested experimental equipment for managing pressure inside logistical transfer containers
🍮 Even experimented with cooking at 1.7 ATM and managed to make crème brûlée in the microwave!
“Jules’ Undersea Lab was the perfect venue for our space analog research! The confined conditions, necessity of wearing environmental gear for EVAs, and the opportunity for neutral buoyancy training made JUL a great fit for our program.”
– Paul Bakken, SEA-STAR Executive Officer
From exploring life beneath the surface to preparing for the challenges of exploration beyond our planet, SEA-STAR brought ocean and space research together in a pretty incredible way 🚀🤿
